Last year, the Mariel terminal processed a record 335,000 20-foot(6-meter)
equivalent cargo units, 2 percent more than in the previous year, Baker said, adding he expected light growth again this year.
Cuba's new Mariel deepwater container terminal hopes to further
its plan to become a regional shipping hub by completing dredging next year so it can receive mega-sized vessels, its general manager Charles Baker said on Thursday.
In the long run, Mariel's backers want it to exploit expansion of the Panama
canal by providing good quality facilities, and become a hub for ocean carriers which would then feed the eastern coasts of the Americas with smaller vessels.